1. Technological Field
The present invention relates to a cassette holder, and a capturing platform and a mobile radiation capturing apparatus that include the cassette holder. In particular, the present invention relates to a cassette holder that can be loaded with a radiation image capturing apparatus, and a capturing platform and a mobile radiation capturing apparatus that include the cassette holder.
2. Description of the Related Art
Radiographic images, such as X-ray images, captured with radiation rays are widely used for disease diagnosis, for example. Traditional radiographic images for medical use have been captured with screen films. Computed radiographic (CR) apparatuses including photostimulable phosphor sheets have been recently developed to digitalize the radiographic images. Furthermore, radiation image capturing apparatuses (flat panel detectors) have been recently developed that can detect radiation rays at a two-dimensional array of radiation detecting elements and read the radiation rays as digital image data from the radiation detecting elements.
A traditional radiation image capturing apparatus is of a dedicated type that is integrated with a support; however, a portable (also referred to as a cassette-type) radiation image capturing apparatus has been recently developed and put to practical use that includes a housing accommodating two-dimensional array of the radiation detecting elements (refer to, for example, Patent Literature 1 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. H6-342099). In addition, various developments have been made to provide cassette holders that can be loaded with the portable radiation image capturing apparatuses (hereinafter simply referred to as radiation image capturing apparatuses), and capturing platforms and mobile radiation capturing apparatuses including the cassette holders (refer to, for example, Patent Literature 2 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2000-37382)).
In some cases, a radiation image capturing apparatus loaded on a cassette holder of the capturing platform or mobile radiation capturing apparatuses transfers image data to an external device, transmits and receives signals to/from the external devices, or is supplied with electric power from the external devices, via a wired cable connected to a connector of the cassette holder (refer to, for example, Patent Literature 3 (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2012-110542).
In this case, the radiation image capturing apparatus F has a connection port Cf on a side face near a corner of the radiation image capturing apparatus F, and the connection port Cf is provided with pins p connected to the leads in a housing f of the radiation image capturing apparatus F, as illustrated in FIG. 14A, for example. With reference to FIG. 14B, the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F is connected to a connector Cb of the cassette holder (not shown), and the radiation image capturing apparatus F is thereby loaded on the cassette holder.
The radiation image capturing apparatus F is then connected to the external device (not shown) via the cable Ca through the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F and the connector Cb of the cassette holder. The radiation image capturing apparatus F transmits and receives signals to/from the external device via the cable Ca, etc. and is supplied with electric power from the external device.
In another case, the connector Cb of the cassette holder is provided with a magnet (not shown), and the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F is provided with a metal plate mp (shown in FIG. 14A) at a position corresponding to the position of the magnet of the connector Cb. For connection of the connector Cb to the connection port Cf, the magnet of the connector Cb of the cassette holder is fixed to the metal plate mp on the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F. Such a configuration can ensure the connection between the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F and the connector Cb of the cassette holder.
Unfortunately, the configuration in which the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F is magnetically fixed to the connector Cb of the cassette holder hinders detachment of the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F from the connector Cb of the cassette holder when the radiation image capturing apparatus F is detached from the cassette holder, compared with a configuration in which the connection port Cf is not magnetically fixed to the connector Cb.
In detail, in order to detach the radiation image capturing apparatus F from the cassette holder, relatively large force should be applied to the radiation image capturing apparatus F and the connector Cb in opposite directions perpendicular to the contacting face between the radiation image capturing apparatus F and the connector Cb, as indicated by the arrows in FIG. 14B.
As described above, the configuration in which the connection port Cf of the radiation image capturing apparatus F is magnetically fixed to the connector Cb of the cassette holder ensures the connection between the connection port Cf and the connector Cb, but hinders the detachment of the radiation image capturing apparatus F from the cassette holder.